When people stare at Minnesota heavyweight wrestler BrockLesnar, they can be forgiven for thinking he's about to rip offhis shirt and scream like Dr. David Banner in The IncredibleHulk, "Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'mangry." For good reason. Lesnar is the most imposing collegeheavyweight wrestler in the nation. At 6'4", 270 pounds ofvirtually all muscle (his body fat is 9%), Lesnar looks like afugitive from the World Wrestling Federation. Instead, he's beenone of the top performers in college wrestling this season andis a favorite to win the NCAA heavyweight title later this month.

Minnesota wrestling coach J Robinson calls Lesnar an anomaly, afreakish combination of size (56-inch chest and 21-inch biceps),speed, strength and skill. Robinson has seen Lesnar, who is 20to 30 pounds heavier and four inches taller than the averagecollege heavyweight, throw 260-pound men around like dolls andexecute finesse moves rarely used by guys in his weight class.Since joining the Golden Gophers after winning the nationaljunior college heavyweight title at Bismarck (N.Dak.) College in1998, Lesnar has been all but unbeatable. He was 24-2 lastseason as a junior, won the Big Ten title and finished second inthe NCAAs. This season he's 22-1 with 11 pins and is thetop-ranked heavyweight in the nation, according to AmateurWrestling News, despite a narrow 5-3 loss to Iowa's 6'1",250-pound Wes Hand in Minnesota's final dual meet.

"What makes Brock so special is he learned how to wrestle at thelower weights," says Robinson, whose Gophers rank No. 2 in thenation. "A lot of people don't realize how quick and agile he is."

That's because it's hard to get past Lesnar's imposing physique.He's a weightlifting fanatic and has put on 60 pounds sincegraduating from Webster (S.Dak.) High in 1996. He can deadlift720 pounds, squat 695 and bench-press 475, totals that arousesuspicion that he didn't attain such strength naturally.Robinson had Lesnar tested for steroids shortly after he arrivedat Minnesota. The results were negative. "I never thought Brockwas using steroids," says Robinson. "When people look at him,they make assumptions, and I told Brock that I wanted toeliminate the question before it became an issue. He didn't havea problem with that."

Lesnar learned about hard work while growing up on his family'sdairy farm. Lesnar would rise at 4:45 to help milk the cows, andhe served as his father's right-hand man in the field when notin school. As a youngster Lesnar tried to lift everything insight, and at age five he had already suffered two hernias aftertrying to heft bales of hay.

"All I wanted to do was get big and strong," says Lesnar. "I wasamazed by guys like Arnold Schwarzenegger, and I'd always bedoing push-ups and pull-ups at home. On the farm I tried to be aworkhorse because I knew if I could cut it on the farm, I couldcut it anywhere."

In a state that elected a former professional wrestling star asits governor, Lesnar has developed a following as a GoldenGopher. Fans wear T-shirts to matches that tout him as BROCKFASTOF CHAMPIONS, and during the Brock Bit every Thursday afternoonon a Minneapolis radio station, he dutifully answers fans'questions. Lesnar is a year from obtaining a business degree andsays he will remain in school next year, even though he willhave used up his wrestling eligibility.

Minnesota football coach Glen Mason is wooing Lesnar to playdefensive line for him next fall, an option he is considering.He has also been contacted by the WWF and World ChampionshipWrestling, but Lesnar would like to try to qualify for the 2000Olympics (the trials are in April) and play football beforepondering a career in pro wrestling.

"It's great to have a bunch of options, but all I can thinkabout is winning a national title," says Lesnar. "Sometimes Ilie in bed and dream about it, and I wake up sweating. It takesmore than talent. It's about heart and desire, and I want itmore than anyone."